MSPeconomist

What passports do you and your sister have?

JNelson113

To give you a sense of what it's like in British Columbia, at least, the local health ministry is encouraging people to consider having their summer vacations by staying in the province "later this summer". https://www.piquenewsmagazine.com/wh...kTB3hYRNIL8cW4

So government officials in B.C. don't even want their residents traveling to other provinces in Canada, and they don't want people traveling at all anytime soon.

This is the sort of stuff that causes me to think that there's almost no chance that the border opens anytime this summer. :-(

Badenoch

I agree. Maybe by Labour Day depending on what happens during the summer months.

The problem with the world's largest hitherto undefended border is that it is large. When it opens it has to open everywhere and the decision will not be made based on the best possible scenario. Ottawa won't likely open the border with the U.S. in B.C. and not the rest of the country.

kalderlake

Lake of the Ozarks doesn't seem to be suffering from fear-induced ignorance.

Maybe head there instead.

Badenoch

No, the ignorance of the Ozarks is not the result of fear. Other causes perhaps but not fear.

iahphx

That's pretty smug, no? You do realize that if you are not a senior citizen with multiple co-morbidities, the riskiest part of any trip to Canada would be the drive. By far. If you had to drive 300 miles, it would be about 20x more dangerous than the virus.

So who's actually ignorant? Those folks in the Ozarks had a good time, and will all be fine. There's no reason to worship those cowering in fear and causing massive economic disruption and decrease in quality of life.

Taiwaned

CANADA

We are Canadian.

SJOGuy

But, iahphx, the issue is not only the risk to you. It's what you might do to put other people at risk.

Badenoch

Canadian citizens are permitted to return. You'd face a 14 day quarantine. Getting back to Taiwan however might be an issue.

iahphx

That is true. But that risk is near zero as well. Half our USA cases are from nursing homes. They won't be visiting. Another quarter come from prisons and hospitals. Again, not visitors. The next largest group is meatpackers. Probably also not visiting (many aren't even citizens who'd have passports).. Almost no one gets the virus through casual contact. You get it from people you live with, or visit with in an enclosed space that lasts several hours. No one will get it from an infected visitor at a grocery store, passing them on a walk, or eating at a lobster pound. I guess it's possible some visitor will go clubbing in Toronto or something and somehow infect a Canadian, but that would be extremely rare, and not the kind of vacation most Americans take to Canada.

Once these facts become better appreciated, and the virus recedes further, the fear factor will be reduced and the border will open. The virus should certainly be much diminished by mid-June, but whether that's early enough to get the border open for July I do not know.

SJOGuy

That is simply not known to be true. I wish I could tell you that you alone assume the risk for your decisions, so go ahead. Not the case here. We put others at risk too.

Regarding your plans, I'm reading left and right about cancellations of annual summer events, even events scheduled for July and August. I imagine planning already has to be underway for mid- and late-summer goings-on. (We're already almost at June 1.) If there's doubt about their viability, organizers are deciding to cancel. Now, you and I will disagree about the motives for cancellation; you'll say it's unnecessarily alarmist; I'll say it's prudent. But if there's nothing going on when you get to PEI, will it be any fun to be there? Assuming you can even get there, that is.

I was planning to be in China this summer. Yeah. Like that's going to happen!

iahphx

Well, there's at least one Canadian province I'll probably get to visit this summer: Alberta. They've looked at the science, recognize the reality and are coming out of their bunkers. I guess my September trip from Montana to the Canadian Rockies is looking pretty solid!

https://calgarysun.com/opinion/colum...erta-lockdowns

JimInOhio

Missouri and Kansas officials urging everyone who went to that pool to self-quarantine.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/26/u...ronavirus.html

LondonElite

Not sure if serious or sarcastic, since you are quoting the Sun...

No provincial premier gets to make international border decisions. That's up to Ottawa. But even the article you quoted says nothing about this.

Badenoch

Yes. Ottawa and Washington will decide in tandem and it is not likely the American and Canadian governments will agree to open the border in one region and keep in closed in another. It is also possible a 14-day quarantine requirement would still be in effect.